77/07

Wednesday June 13th

Telstra Call Centre Closures

The Australian Government met with Telstra today to determine measures to minimise the impact of the planned closure of 13 call centres around the country, the Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, Senator Helen Coonan said.

Telstra recently announced their decision to close call centres in Launceston, Newcastle, Wollongong and some capital cities resulting in the net loss of around 500 jobs.

“While unemployment is at a 30 year record low of 4.2 per cent under this Government, call centre closures can still have an impact, especially in smaller regional centres such as Launceston,” Senator Coonan said.

Today’s discussions with Telstra were constructive and options to minimise the impact of Telstra’s decision are now being considered and will be worked through in the coming weeks.

Tasmania’s Coalition Members and Senators, including the Federal Member for Bass Michael Ferguson, also met with Telstra today and they will shortly write to Telstra CEO Sol Trujillo with a specific proposal for Telstra to retain its call centre functions in Launceston.

“I support the proposal by my Tasmanian colleagues for Telstra to reconsider its decision to close some of the call centres, especially the Launceston centre which employs more than 250 people,” Senator Coonan said.

“I understand that companies need to operate efficiently, but consideration also needs to be given to the impact that these types of decisions can have on local regional communities.

“I look forward to continuing to work cooperatively with Telstra to determine workable solutions for those communities that have been impacted by this decision.”

Media contact: Fiona Telford 02 6277 7480